Element Zero
by MittensBlack95
Summary: Megaera Byourgman had been born on a human colony to a loving mother, a medic marine from the Alliance. After spending her teenage years on Fehl Prime with her mother and sister, she enlisted, and found out her boring life had more to it than she had been led to believe.


"Humans used to worship the sun, moon and stars as Gods you know," I said to Zaemme, "they even named the planets in our solar system after their pagan polytheistic deities." She laughed, that half hearted laugh you do through your nose when something amuses you, she probably wasn't incredibly interested in my riveting conversation, when we should've been calibrating the weapons system surrounding the dig site.

"Not surprising, given your people also believed in mermaids and dragons" she teased, I looked in her direction, she was facing me, but I couldn't tell if she was smiling or not; her helmet covered her entire face, but sometimes, if I looked closely enough, I could see the silhouette of her nose and a little light reflect off her eyes.

"Ha ha" I stuck my tongue out at her, "who was it that didn't believe arachnids were legitimate organisms until being planet-side?"

She laughed, it was a musical laugh, or at least as musical as a voice could be despite various air filters between her and my ears to keep her frail body alive. Her enviro-suit was beautiful, navy blue and gold material with swirling patterns like nebulas across her body, a sturdy belt across her petite hips that would holster a modest but effective number of guns, were we not on Alliance property investigating Prothean ruins. I had studied xeno-sociological anthropology, thanks to a friend of my mother who happened to be a very knowledgeable professor, and my degree had resulted in my helping out with digs and data caches. I had been bullied by other local colony kids because I was home studying for a degree at the age of 15 rather than running around playing the newest craze of omni-game, but my degree suited me just fine. Zaemme had a degree in historical and contemporary technology, and without any hints of racism, being a Quarian made her seemingly naturally predisposed to a proclivity to working with technology, so when it came to opening and working the the artifacts we found, I'd hand them to her; like someone struggling to wrench open the lid of a pickle jar.

"Megaera, look at this" she handed me what seemed to be a data pad with unusual scrawled engravings across its back, "what do you make of it?" I held it in my hand. It was exquisite; slender, slim, and cold to the touch even after holding it for several minutes while examining it. During the moment's silence, Zaemme had begun talking to herself, she didn't do that often, and a lot of the time she'd tell me off later on for apparently ignoring her or someone else who was apparently vastly important.

I blanked out of the immediate surroundings and examined the artefact, I stroked my hand along its side. An iridescent glow seemed to shimmer over the top of the screen, like eezo in its liquid form. I squinted at the screen again; perhaps my bias for wanting to discover something interesting in this find had caused me to see it. Though I had been sure I'd seen something, the second I began concentrating, it was gone. Zaemme waved her hand in front of my face,

"Mission control to Meg!" she snapped, irritated but still patient, "the Major wants to talk to you."

It was Major Falkirk, a tall, dark skinned woman with a bad temper, who had been stationed here for the last six months thanks to the mercenary raids we'd suffered on the colony nearly two years ago. Her hair was tied up in a pony tail that had the potential to look menacing... if it didn't jump up and down in the way only ponytails can master. Her helmet was positioned like an old basketball on her hip, her arm curved round it to keep it from falling. I stood to attention.

"Miss Byourgman, I believe you applied for enrolment in Alliance duty?" she said firmly.

"Yes, ma'am, I did"

"Do you really feel like you're up to the challenge, Megeara?" she gave me a judging look that could only have been doubt at my capabilities in the field.

"Yes, I know I'm soft around the edges but I sure can pack a p-''

"Good, then I want you to report for your first official training and enrolment tomorrow at 08.00. If you're late we'll consider that as your notice of resignation." She performed a sharp spot turn, creating a divot in the mud of our dig site and walked away. I glared at her while she marched off, probably laughing at my petite, soft form, and big green eyes. Part of me was terrified to actually attend the training session, the rest of me wanted to rub Major's nose in the mud she'd just trudged through and slam her around with so much biotic strength she wouldn't wake up for a month. But my better judgement knew that would be a sure fire way to not even get started in the Alliance.

"Oh, Keelah!" Zaemme exclaimed, "that's amazing, you're going to have so much hard work, but so much fun training. What do you think they'll have you doing?" She asked, suddenly very excited in my new budding affair with combat.

"I dunno, probably defending the colony, I guess" I sighed, "But nothing interesting ever happens here. Nothing except that piss poor mercenary attack has ever happened here on Fehl Prime." I mused.

"What do you think your mother will say?" she gasped.

'Shit' I thought, I hadn't considered the conversation I'd have to have with my mother about joining the Alliance, even if it was just a defensive position on the colony; mainly because I hadn't thought I'd even get accepted.

"You know how over protective she is," I whined, she'll probably go on and on about how it isn't safe, that I'm endangering myself, that despite my biotics I'm better suited to a physically slow paced, intellectually stimulating career out of the way of action." I droned. I knew her speeches practically off by heart, but there was no stopping me, I was twenty-one, earning my own keep, just living with her because I didn't completely want to leave home yet – until now. I was ready to adventure and save people and protect my loved ones. After years of following my hero, my idol, on the vids, admiring her every battle and every press interview (even if sometimes she did have a very low patience with news reporters), I was ready to become more like her. Like Commander Jane Shepard; first human SPECTRE, saviour of the Citadel, and a martyr, dying to save the remaining members of the Normandy crew before it was destroyed in action. My eyes got a little dewy with tears thinking about it.

"I think you'll do well," Zaemme said, patting my shoulder with her gloved three-digit hand, "honestly, if anyone can nail training with the Alliance, it'll be you. Well, as long as its not for muscles, because no offence, you're very squishy, I think even I've got more muscle on me than you." She laughed.

"I'll do it, I'll be great. I might even get off this little rock and do something important with my life" I insisted, "besides, I don't think we're getting anywhere with these Prothean relics anytime soon. I might as well adventure the galaxy."

Dinner would've been much easier had Fione not told our mother about my success with the Alliance enrolment. Zaemme and she were best friends, so of course Zaemme would've told her, but she seemed far too pleased with herself that she'd "told on me" in essence. She was seventeen, and at the annoying phase of thinking she knows everything because she's very nearly legally an adult.

"So you went and enrolled with the Alliance despite my explicitly telling you not to?" mum said to me at the table, passing me a bowl of pasta she'd made that afternoon once finishing her day at the laboratory. She had a face smothered with an unimpressed glare. I nodded.

"Yes, I'm nearly twenty-two, I'm pretty sure it's a little old to start Alliance training, but after my training from Uncle Steven, I think I'm up to the challenge."

"No, it's far too dangerous. You're best suited to intellectual roles sweetie," she sighed, "I just don't think this is for you."

"I'm doing it. I'll be fine," I argued, "You've assured me that I've been biotically superior since I was a kid! I'll be fine, it's not like I'll suddenly be on a different planet of back on a space station," I snapped "we're supposed to be stationed here, on Fehl Prime, and it's not like anything dangerous or interesting ever happens here anyway" I mumbled the latter, it hurt a little that I wasn't even going to see any real action, I wanted to defend people, not train how to shoot assailants that didn't exist on our little colony that hadn't seen any danger since the failed merc attack.

"Fine," my mother said, she had given up on the fight, she was going to let me go! "But if anything happens and you need help, I won't be hesitating to get my old uniform out."

"MUM!" I nearly yelled, I glared at Fione, this was all her fault, I was an adult and being treated like a child. Our mother was overly protective of us and she knew I wanted to adventure and get away and now our mother was going to ruin it, "I bet you didn't have your mother babysitting you and telling the other marines off when you did your training in the first contact war. You'll only embarrass the life out of me!"

"No, you're right, I didn't have a parent coddling me in the marines, but I did have Steven and your father around throughout my training and my military career," she sighed, "I guess you're old enough to do this, I'll help if you need and we'll call Steven and see what he can do."

"Yeah, Uncle Steven will want to see you train!" Fione said excitedly, "he's not seen us in ages!"

"You do know he's not really our uncle, don't you? He's mum's best friend from years ago when we used to live on the Alliance Space station."

"Well from my years of service, he's always been around to help us," mum said stroking Fione's face, "he's someone we can trust."

Steven had been around for as long as I can remember. He was my father figure. He'd taught me how to shoot, how to use my biotics effectively and how to reign them in when I was emotionally vulnerable. He taught me everything about survival and defending myself. I'd grown up on a space station, till I was about nine, with him and various other marines, commanders and admirals. I was the baby sister to the young Lieutenants and Ensigns, and a protégé to the biotic squads. But when my sister turned four, our mother said we were moving to Fehl Prime, she didn't say why, but our father wasn't coming with us. I didn't really remember much about my father, just that he was always away on missions or on business and that he'd always bring me a teddybear or a some kind of gift when he can back. But he came back very rarely, he'd be away for months at a time and wouldn't always vid-com us goodnight, and as a little girl who felt all alone in the galaxy, that broke my heart. Mum never talked about our father, except in passing, nothing in depth and nothing about his name, it must have hurt her too. But Steven had been there to help us with the move, kept it discreet from our friends in the Alliance and helped us set up on Fehl Prime. He was the only father figure I could remember.

After dinner, my sister started chatting to mum about her second medical degree, she wanted to be a doctor just like our mother, and I took that as my cue to get ready for bed and do some extra-net surfing. I was sure that I'd fail on my first day of training. I'd fall flat on my face, or miss a target, something stupid that was a beginners basic would be my downfall, I just knew it. Maybe Major Falkirk was right, maybe I wasn't up to the challenge, she certainly didn't think so. I was about to quit until I saw my holo-poster of Commander Shepard,

"Being the first human SPECTRE wasn't easy, in fact, it was an honour, but a hard one to live up to. But if I can be Earth's representative for the council, though I've never set foot on our home world, you can do anything you set your mind to." The recording said in her familiar mid-tone to deep voice.

"Alright, Shepard," I mumbled, I'll go. She couldn't hear me, and I'd never been able to meet my hero before she died. But I was going to go to training in the morning. I set my alarm clock for two hours before I was due at training, there was a lot of prep before travelling to the middle of the colony.

The next morning was surprisingly warm for our equivalent of spring, so I doubted I'd need a jumper of any kind and my thermal jacket was a definite no go. I slipped on a pair of tight leather trousers, my big bulky boots and a loose fitting t-shirt. I doubted we'd be doing much training today, probably just a lot of paper work and a series of induction activities to see if we were mentally up to the challenge. After packing my rucksack, I looked at my omni-tool, I had an incoming vid-call from Sialah, my girlfriend stationed at her commando unit. I accepted the call and held my arm up so I could see her beautiful face before the next few days of brutality upon my fragile little form

"Sialah! Darling, I'm so happy to see you," I cried, we hadn't spoken in a few weeks, her squad had been inundated with fights against the Eclipse and Blue Suns across a system further afield in the Terminus, "I've missed you my love." Tears were budding up in my eyes

"Megaera, beautiful, your mother emailed me last night that you got your place with the Alliance! I'm so happy for you, I know you've always wanted that!" her blue lips made the perfect shapes for the words and sounds, even through the omni-screen I could see the delicate curve of her cupids bow, a light with the glow from her omni-tool. She was perfect, soft but firm, all made of ice but with a burning supernova inside, "I just wanted to talk to you before you get all caught up in everything an-"

"All caught up? Babe, I'm starting today, we've got induction and training today! I'm so excited but last night I nearly thought about quitting, already! Could you believe that!?" I was so excited to share everything with her that I was tripping up on words. I almost didn't notice her face knotting with concern in between her brow bones, a wrinkle of one hundred and six year old wisdom, though she was still just a teenager in Asari years. My eyes narrowed when I noticed her expression

"What's wrong Sia?" I asked. My heart in my gut

"There's just... Well, there's a lot going on right now. I guess I'll tell you when you've finished your initial training." She finished her face low. She was a beautiful blue, caught somewhere between forget-me-nots and the sky here on Fehl Prime,

"Darling, just tell me," I felt bile rising in my throat, she and I hadn't spoken in weeks and she'd seemed a little imbalanced last time we'd seen each other at her apartment on our trip to the Citadel, "You know what not knowing things does to me."

She laughed, not a malicious laugh, one that was almost reminiscing of a sweet feature of someone you used to know,

"Yeah, you get sick, your head spins for weeks and then you get that zit at the very top of you right eyebrow from rubbing your head too much that you just can't budge," she smiled at me, "Alright. There's a lot for us to talk about, but here's the 'biggie'," her omni-tool camera switched to show a vertical picture flowing down her side, along her long blue arms, her curves of her chest, her waist stomach with its round bump, her hips, her thighs... her bump...

"You're... you're.. We're... Did we?" I breathed. The camera zoomed back to her face, a melancholy look across her beautiful purple toned eyes, even the cartilage at the back of her head looked forlorn.

"Megaera, I'm pregnant. Asari pregnancies take a long time, the neurology of the foetus takes longer to produce in the womb than a human baby. It takes nearly two years and a half. To us that's your nine months. Its a lot to consider, and we will need to talk about it a lot more. I'm very young to be pregnant, especially with a human's bond baby. We'll need to talk some more eventually, but you have a busy few days, I guess, I'll err, I'll let you go..." she mumbled,

"Sia! This is important, we shoul-" but she cut me off

"I have to go. Have a good day, Megaera." And she was gone. Nothing left on the omni-tool screen.

Tears were running down my face. I tried to snap out of it. She had that power over me, emotionally controlling my day from just a few minutes conversation. I splashed cold water in my face in my en suite bathroom, looked myself in the mirror and wondered how I could've produced a bondbaby with Sialah, she was so young to have a baby, so was I; and human asari babies hardly ever happen this young, something about the human's random genetic material is harder to pick up in the bonding process when the asari partner is young because the human race are so genetically diverse in comparison to other races. I wanted to cry. It was essentially an accident, that clearly she had kept from me for a few months from the size of her bump. I dried my hands and face, tied my tousled blonde hair into my usual loose bun. I was quite lucky to have naturally thick dark eyelashes and pretty pink eyelids, my even skin tone had made me a target for bitchiness from the other girls on the colony during our teenage years, but my looks had never really been a big issue for me. I was more concerned with biotics training when Steven came to see us, rather than breakouts of acne.

I jogged down the stairs where my mother was making some porridge for my breakfast. I frowned a little, she only made porridge when she thought I was sad.

"You're up early," I said, "I can get breakfast on the way there."

"I heard you crying," she smiled at me, a soft smile that said she worries about me, "is everything alright with Sialah?" I shook my head,

"No, but I don't wanna talk about it," I said into the porridge she'd just poured out for me, "Anything interesting going on at the lab today?" I tried to change the topic, mum seemed to understand Sia was a tender subject, and looked as though there was something vastly exciting at the lab,

"We think we've made a breakthrough with an anti-paralysis serum to fight various cases of full body stasis fields caused by toxins, its fascinating really..." we talk about it for the next twenty minutes till I'd finished my breakfast and caught sight of the time,

"Shit! I've got fifteen minutes till Major Fucks-herself decides I've quit. I've got to go, mum."

"Do you want a lift?"

"Nahh, I'll run, the old shuttle car takes ages to get started and I'll be there in a few," I kissed her goodbye and yelled that I didn't know what time I'd be back home tonight, I'd omni-vid her when I was finished anyway.

I pelted down the street, slinging my rucksack across my shoulders, if I was late I was in the proverbial shit and wouldn't have a snowballs chance in the galactic core of having a career in the Alliance. My legs weren't very long, but I could run pretty quickly for a five foot three girl with boobs that go in the way. The streets on the colony weren't particularly straight, but I knew the way to the Alliance training centre off by heart, my Uncle Steven used to take me there to show me the ships and the weapons even though mum would hate him for it. In a few minutes I was there, panting and pulling myself upright, I made my way to the line of new recruits for registration. I wasn't sweating, but I was breathing a little heavy after a hard run.

"Oh look, guys, Princess of the Bitches has come to slum it with we peasants!" One of the colony boys I knew from around the corner yelled over to me, tapping his friends on their arms and laughing in my direction. It was school yard bullying and I was certainly not going to rise to the bait.

"Shut up maggot! Maybe she just didn't want to shag you because you're dick's smaller than a pyjack's pinky toe! Now stand to attention and shut your trap!" yelled a young marine from the top of the line of newly terrified young adults. He was tall and slim, not heavily muscled, but probably here to teach us biotics or tech from the absence of heavy weapons on his holster. He put his hands on his hips and glared at the bunch of rag-tag recruits in front of him, "I am Chief Biotic Corporal Jake Hakoda, and I will be putting you through your paces today as Major In Chief Falkirk doesn't think you assholes are worth her god damn time! So whoever lasts today, might even get a chance to embarrass themselves in front of her tomorrow! Am I understood?"

There was a mumbling chorus of "yeahs", "yes" and "I guesses". But he looked more than a little unimpressed.

"What was that maggots?!"

"Sir, yes, sir!" yelled me and a few other educated people.

"Good Lord, that was like pulling teeth!" he cried, "Now, I'm gonna call your name, and your gonna gimme a 'YESSIR'!" after a few people with the misfortune to have a surname beginning with 'A' I heard the cringey sound of my own name

"Byourgman comma M?" Chief Biotic Corporal Hakoda called out. I froze. It was like being back at school again,

"Yes sir!" I barked, hoping not to seem like a brown nose, but the moment of possible embarrassment didn't last long as he passed onto rolecall the rest of us maggots. We had paper work handed out to us, to sign, read through and take a quick note of medical incapacities. I made a brief note of my proneness to headaches and migraines, but added it was nothing major, generally caused by over using my biotics, and perfectly tended to with regular doses of painkillers. A few other kids had a good long paragraph of health issues and dietry needs, and a couple of meatheaded boys boasting loudly about how they were an optimal male at the peak of their health, I rolled my eyes. Wankers.

We were given a time table of the next few days activities, seminars and training sessions. In approximately twenty minutes we had hand-to-hand training in the main hall of the base. It was probably to get us used to the standard of discipline they expected, I supposed I'd have to give it my all. I filed into the main training hall with the first few to hand in their paper work, it was airy, the floor covered in combat mats, the walls with Alliance training regulations and time tables for the next rotations. It looked like the beginning of a world of physical pain that would probably leave my peach like skin covered in bruises; at least it would be different to the emotional pain Sialah had just put me through, it would be a welcome distraction. I was going to be a mother. Father? Parent. And she hadn't thought to tell me sooner. I was sad. I was angry. How could she not tell me? My own child, a sweet blue faced baby, with hopefully her violet eyes and my upturned nose, how could she not tell me? She'd been away for months. She'd not spoken to me for weeks, and she'd been distant and moody when we'd last seen each other. Did being bondmates mean nothing to her? Maybe she'd found someone new, a Turian boy with impressive cartilage and fringing with an Asari fetish? She'd found comfort in someone else's arms while I was crying myself to sleep missing my blue angel. She'd probably bonded with dozens of people on her travels with her commando unit. Then it suddenly dawned on me. What if the baby wasn't mine? Was that what she wanted to talk to me about? She wanted to break up because she'd found her perfect match, and was starting a family with them. She wasn't telling me because she wanted to plan a future together and find a home together with enough room for the baby. Or to ask me to go with her when she told her mother and Asari father about our new arrival. No, she had called to tell me that we were over and that she was having a baby with an attractive, more intelligent, assertive, sexy son of a bitch whore and that I was old news.

I was livid.

"Byourgman, you're up," called Hakoda, suddenly there were a few battered and bruised recruits stood on the other side of the training mats.

'When did that happen? What are we meant to be doing?' I thought. I dropped my rucksack and headed to the cushioned floor,

"Go easy on her Vega, she looks like she might snap." Jake chuckled

A tall, tanned, incredibly muscled Lieutenant stood at one end of the mats, a lop sided condescending smirk slathered across his scarred face. 'What am I meant to be doing?' I thought panicked.

"You in the right place, Tinkerbell?" he goaded, "Sprinkle some pixie dust and fly away, this ain't no place for a scared little girl." I snapped back into focus, Sialah could wait, this bitch was gonna get the 'scared little girl's fist in his spleen and a newly ripped anus.

"Sparring?" I asked, my best death glare my first weapon of choice. He dramatically clicked his neck, and rolled his shoulders,

"Well no shit, honey, don't worry, I won't bite," he winked, "you ain't, my type." The crowd wolf whistled.

"Vega," Jake scolded, "quit flirting and get on with it!"

He took an offensive stance, fists primed for quick painful jabs. I took my usual defensive position, ready to jump back and around my new sparring partner. I didn't know his style, Steven always told me that was what to look out for when sparring, but I hadn't been paying attention. Fuck. He was huge. At least six foot tall, well muscled enough to be a small Krogan, he could kick my ass in less than a few seconds. I wasn't going to give the cocky git the satisfaction.

"You ready, Tink?" he smirked, "Ladies first."

I took a run at him from across the mats, my feet pounding on the ground. I did a flip just like the marines on our old space station had taught me, still facing my opponent when I first got airborne so I can still see the slippery bastards every move. I propelled myself over him, it had been a long time since I'd sparred with anyone. He let out a cry as I essentially karate chopped into both sides of his overly thick neck, it was more out of surprise than any amount of severe pain.

"What was that about little girl?" I hissed at him, after a neat backwards roll to just past the ends of the mat. He spun round, a new found pleasure in the match. He took a run at me this time, like a rhino on steroids. I smirked. Idiot. I got ready to jump, but this time, he was more than prepared. Just as I tried to get airborne, his wide arm caught around my waist, like a hook. He slammed me against the mat, back and core muscles first to experience how thin these mats really were. After my head smacked the mat, I discovered a whole new nebula of stars across my splittingly painful eyes.

There was a chorus of groans from the previously defeated recruits, obviously hoping someone would stand for longer than sixty seconds against Mr Vega. I shook my head, and my training from Uncle Steve kicked in again, "Whatever you do, stay on your feet. If you're knocked down, get back on your feet. You're a threat when you're up, Meg, because you're little and quick."

As if in slow motion, I spun around on the mat from the weight and force of his arm, I moved quickly enough to surprise him and kicked his legs out from under him. There was a satisfying thud as he hit the ground, I sprung up flicked my hair out of my face.

"Stop dancing around, Tinkerbell, and come fight me!" he yelled. We ran at each other, throwing punches at each other, I got a few in his shoulders and chest, and he a few in my gut. After a minute or so, he seemed to lose his temper with the time wasted in this match, and made a fierce blow to my face with his knuckled fist. I was sent flying backwards, and landed on my side my hands gripping the mat to stop me from spinning away any further. I could taste blood in my mouth. I searched around with my tongue and found a freshly open cut on my lip.

"Jesus, Vega!" Hakoda yelled, "we're only trying to test their self defence to tailor their training, what the fuck are you thinking."

I looked over at the rest of my class, some of the other girls who were significantly taller and more athletically built were shocked, but a clear glimmer of hope that they might do better if a 'pixie' like me stood a chance. Vega stood, clearly shocked at his own actions, his face torn between continuing a good fight and helping a damsel in distress,

"Here, Meg," he said quietly, "let me help you up." He offered his hand. No one had said the match was over. Like a coil I sprang, I had been bending my arms while he'd been walking over to me, I pushed my forward, feet first into his face and chest. My biotics thrown out like a giant florescent wave of force behind my frame. I flung myself into a standing position and wiped my busted lip with the back of my hand. Once he'd propped himself up the whole room gasped at his freshly introduced black eye, puffy and swollen from my boots and biotic field.

"Sweet mother of Vishnu!" proclaimed Jake, "Well, that is how you defend yourself in a life or death situation! Your opponent won't fight fair, so neither should you. However when you're in here, guys, let's keep the blood drawing to a minimum," I slowly shifted off the mat while he was talking, to grab my rucksack from the floor near the others, "Okay? Take twenty."

The group of new recruits dispersed, apart from maybe six or seven plus Hakoda, who crowded me to ask about that fight. Was I alright? What was I thinking? Had I actually been to Grissom Academy? I answered their questions in brief as I watched Vega walk away to get an ice pack, a new, hopefully more respecting lopsided smirk on his face.


End file.
